1. Technical Field
Due to the common use of staples as fasteners, staple removers may be found in almost any office and used in many other applications, such as interior design, fabric production and tailoring, etc. For example, many times staples must be removed to allow papers to be individually copied or to insert an edited form or page. Whatever the reason for wanting to remove a staple from papers, cloth, or other material, it is desirable to do so without tearing or mutilating the material being held together or in place.
Pulling staples manually from materials such as sheet papers is not only extremely inconvenient, but can rarely be accomplished without tearing or mutilation of the stapled material. Thus, various devices have been invented to facilitate easier removal of staples.
Most staple removers require further pulling of the staple after the remover has engaged the staple. Thus, use of these devices often results in tearing of the stapled material.
A further problem with many staple removers is their small size and the manner of gripping them for use. Since many staple removers utilize either a "plier-type" gripping action or a "thumb to finger" action the user must pick-up the stapled material, such as papers, in order to achieve a comfortable angle for use of the staple remover. Furthermore, these types of grips naturally facilitate the tendency of users to pull the remover away from the material, thus increasing the chance of tearing.
In addition, it is inconvenient to have to purchase and maintain separate stapler and staple removing devices, which is the common--indeed pervasive--practice in the art.
2. Background Art
Typical staple remover devices for removing staples from paper are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,922,681 to Heise, U.S. Pat. No. 2,678,575 to Marano, U.S. Pat. No. 2,431,922 to Curtiss, U.S. Pat. No. 2,662,727 to Yerkes, and in U.K. Patent No. 862,468 to Balma et al. and Italian Patent No. 1,220,438 to Balma, et al.
The staple remover disclosed by Heise (U.S. Pat. No. 1,922,681) utilizes two hinged members with a pair of jaws on one end and a pair of handles on the other. This device utilizes a thin blade and a prong engaging portion to pull the staple from the pages. Thus, the staple is dragged by the engaging portion across the length of the blade as it is removed. Although this may decrease mutilation of papers resulting from manual extraction of staples, it may not do so adequately since the staple is extracted at an angle rather than being lifted out in a perpendicular direction.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,678,575 to Marano reveals a plier-type implement with a pair of elongated members secured together at one end, and normally divergent at their other ends. This device, like Heise, utilizes a thin blade opposed to a prong engaging portion to pull the staple from the pages, and presents roughly the same difficulties. Since the blade is thin, the staple is straightened by pulling it across an abutment at an angle, thus increasing the likelihood of tearing.
The staple remover disclosed by Curtiss (U.S. Pat. No. 2,431,922) involves two elongated arms pivotally attached at one end and normally divergent at their other ends due to the bias created by the free ends of a spring located about the pivot. This device removes a staple by engaging the top portion of the staple with notches and flanges on the lower arm, and then utilizing a thin blade and flanges on the upper arm to pull the staple while simultaneously straightening its legs.
U.K. Patent No. 862,468 to Balma, et al. discloses a plier-like device for detaching metallic staples. (See also Italian is Patent 1,220,438 to Balma, et al.) This device utilizes a tapered tongue-like projection of substantially triangular configuration which may be tapered with respect to its width and with respect to its thickness attached to one side of the jaws, and used an abutting means on the other side of the jaws to extract the staple. It extracts staples by driving the tapered-tongue like projection underneath the top portion of a staple with an abutting means when the handles of the device are squeezed together.
The staple remover disclosed by Yerkes (U.S. Pat. No. 2,662,727) has a plate which is parallel to the front surface of a wedge-shaped piece, which results in the staple being pulled by both the wedge-shaped piece and the plate. Indeed, the staple being pulled by both pieces is a common cause of tearing in many staple removers.
All of these devices are operated horizontally by gripping their handles with the thumb on top and the fingers underneath in a grip similar to that used in operating pliers or scissors. The Curtiss device could be operated vertically with a heel of the palm to finger grip, but is not designed to comfortably accommodate such use.
This plier-type grip is less comfortable than a heel of the palm to finger grip when operating a staple remover in a vertical position. Furthermore, operators are more likely to pull on the staple remover device when operating a device horizontally using a plier-type grip than when operating a device vertically using a heel of the palm to finger grip. If a smaller staple remover is desired, such as one that utilizes the thumb on one side and the index and middle fingers on the other side, it would be desirable to incorporate a design that continues to prevent pulling or tearing of the material.
Therefore, a need exists for a staple removing device that completely removes the staple without requiring additional pulling away from the paper, cloth, or other material after the device engages the staple, and which will remove the staple without tearing or mutilating the paper, cloth, or other material. Also, there is a need for a staple remover that may be more comfortably and naturally used, and that minimizes the tendency of the user to pull the remover away from the paper prior to complete extraction of the staple.
Further, the need exists for a device which combines ability to both staple and remove staples, into a single unit, eliminating the need for separate staplers and staple removers.
The aforementioned art is hereby incorporated by reference.